Religion

= R e l i g i o n:  = = = = Being Mummified: = = The process of mummification has two stages. First, the embalming of the body. Then, the wrapping and burial of the body. First, his body is taken to the tent known as 'ibu' or the 'place of purification'. There the embalmers wash his body with good-smelling palm wine and rinse it with water from the Nile. One of the embalmer's men makes a cut in the left side of the body and removes many of the internal organs. It is important to remove these because they are the first part of the body to decompose. natron which will dry them out. The heart is not taken out of the body because it is the centre of intelligence and feeling and the man will need it in the afterlife. A long hook is used to smash the brain and pull it out through the nose. The body is now covered and stuffed with natron which will dry it out. All of the fluids, and rags from the embalming process will be saved and buried along with the body. After forty days the body is washed again with water from the Nile. Then it is covered with oils to help the skin stay elastic. Finally the body is covered again with good-smelling oils. It is now ready to be wrapped in linen. First the head and neck are wrapped with strips of fine linen. Then the fingers and the toes are individually wrapped. The arms and legs are wrapped separately. Between the layers of wrapping, the embalmers place amulets to protect the body in its journey through the underworld. A priest reads spells out loud while the mummy is being wrapped. These spells will help ward off evil spirits and help the deceased make the journey to the afterlife. The arms and legs are tied together. A papyrus scroll with spells from the Book of the Dead is placed between the wrapped hands. More linen strips are wrapped around the body. At every layer, the bandages are painted with liquid resin that helps to glue the bandages together. Finally, a large cloth is wrapped around the entire mummy. It is attached with strips of linen that run from the top to the bottom of the mummy, and around its middle. =
 * = Religion was very important to the Egyptians =
 * = it was strongly influenced by tradition and it guided their lives. =
 * = The Egyptians had up to 2000 Gods and Goddesses; some were worshiped by the whole country while others were just worshiped by local followers. =
 * = In Egypt they had many different stories on how the world began. =
 * = Most animals were considered holy to them. =
 * = They thought the Pharoah was a God as well as the priest. When things went well they believed they were doing their job well but when something went wrong they were blamed. =
 * = Priests would teach school, supervise the artists and work, advise people on their problems and they had funeral rites. =
 * = Egyptian temples were places where the men could communicate with the Gods, each city had a temple. =